Own Your Calling
Own Your Calling
Paul, Silvanus,, and Timothy: To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace to you and peace. We always thank God for all of you, making mention of you constantly in our prayers. We recall, in the presence of our God and Father, your work produced by faith, your labor motivated by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. For we know, brothers and sisters loved by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power, in the Holy Spirit, and with full assurance. You know how we lived among you for your benefit, and you yourselves became imitators of us and of the Lord when, in spite of severe persecution, you welcomed the message with joy from the Holy Spirit. As a result, you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. For the word of the Lord rang out from you, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but in every place that your faith, in God has gone out. Therefore, we don’t need to say anything, for they themselves report what kind of reception we had from you: how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath.
– 1 Thessalonians 1:-10 CSB
The Apostle Paul is writing in response to incredible news. After abruptly leaving Thessalonica, Paul is worried about the state of his brothers and sisters that he left due to unbelievable persecution.
Is the church still standing?
Are the christians there surviving?
Is the Gospel message making a difference in the city?
He sends Timothy to get news on how the church is doing and to his great joy they are doing phenomenal. They are passionately following Jesus, being dynamically changed by Jesus, and as a result are impacting their region with the message of Jesus. They are doing so well that Paul says that they are an example to the churches in other regions. This church is changing their world. How this happened is an example for us as men to follow.
The church at Thessalonica changed their world because they owned their identity and calling in Christ.
Identity
As a man, it’s easy for me to slip into the place of wanting to be a “self-made man” – to be self-reliant and to be in control because all of the outcomes depend on me. While I do have agency and responsibility (“my part”), the way that I work, the way I love my family, the way I interact with others around me must flow from a place of relationship and partnership with God.
“Our doing for God must come from our being with God”1
Paul observes that the church did well because their work came from a heart of worship. The fuel of their lives was an abiding relationship with God. The love and grace of God anchored them in the middle of their persecution, temptations, and work. Brothers, remember, you are made by God and for God.2
Let God’s grace and love for you as His son anchor your life.
Calling
If God’s love for me as a son is my anchoring reality, the outflow is living for the purpose and calling that He gives me. If God’s voice is the voice that matters, what He says goes.
For these healthy, world-changing believers, God’s love moved them to work, preach the Gospel, and make disciples all around them. They didn’t just live for here and now, they lived for eternity. They lived for what ultimately matters – the return of Jesus Christ. They lived for His Kingdom, not their own. They “turned their backs on idols to serve the living and true God…”
Brothers, you are loved by God and were made for relationship and partnership with Him. Own that. What matters more than anything in this world is the love and cause of Christ! Let that motivate you. Let that change you. The King of kings and Lord of lords calls you His son, and He invites you into meaningful relationship and partnership with Him for the sake of what He’s doing in the world.
Reflection: What would it look like for you to live in daily partnership with God in your real, every day life?
Action: When you arrive at work this week, ask God to show you how to partner with Him today.
1 I heard this maxim from Pete Scazzero and is a regular refrain in his books, teachings, and podcast.
2 Colossians 1:16